The Nominees: Album Of The Year
The last general category up in our pre-Grammys preview is also the biggest award of the night: Album of the Year.
As has been discussed on this blog the last two years, this is the closest equivalent to a Best Picture for the Grammys. Album of the Year recognizes a full catalog of musicianship, and historically, this is the one category the Grammys have actually done a fairly good job of nominating the best in addition to the biggest. That being said, that has not always (or even often) translated to the best body of work actually winning the prize. The last six years have proven that point: in alternating years, Kendrick Lamar and Beyoncé lost the award despite having the biggest AND best albums of their respective eligibility periods, and before that, Frank Ocean lost out to Mumford And Sons.
However, not unlike the year's Oscar race, this year is as much a toss-up for Album of the Year as any since I've started following the Grammys. The newly expanded field to 8 nominees has wreaked havoc, throwing more albums in that have the possibility of cancelling each other's votes out. It's not just about the field, though; 2018 simply didn't have an album that dominated both critically AND commercially the way last years have, and as such, there's genuinely no frontrunner. Post Malone and Drake have huge fanbases, and were omnipresent on the radio, but they have the two worst-reviewed albums of any nominees. Brandi Carlile, Janelle Monae, and Kacey Musgraves, it's widely agreed, produced some of the best music of the year. But all three women are just unknown enough to not have celebrity power behind their bids, the way Bruno Mars, Adele, and Taylor Swift, the category's last 3 winners, did. The only two albums that also ruled airwaves and received good-to-great reviews in the past year were Swift's and Ariana Grande's, and somehow, neither one of those were nominated here. So, let the guessing games begin!
In order from worst to best odds, according to GoldDerby.com:
H.E.R. // H.E.R.
Odds: 19-2
Peak Chart Position (Billboard): 47th
Metacritic rating: n/a
Strongest Song: "Rather Be"
Weakest Song: "Pigment"
Daniel's Overall Ranking: 7.5/10
Quick take:
In all awards shows, there are surprise nominees, and then there are SURPRISE nominees. H.E.R.'s nomination definitely falls into the latter, all caps category. The 21-year old Gabi Wilson's debut album came out in 2017, for one, but more significantly, flew completely under the radar everywhere save for R&B circles. H.E.R. is so underground that to date, Metacritic registers zero reviews for her music. Yet, somehow the Grammys were able to single her album out amidst the ridiculous amount of music to comb through, and reached back a full year to do so, no less. I give the Grammys a lot of flak, but they deserve credit for this one; H.E.R. is a remarkable talent to keep an eye on for the future, and her eponymous album is a smooth listen, start-to-finish. Its noteworthy highs are few, perhaps, but its missteps fewer, and though H.E.R. won't win the Grammy, it's impressive for the young artist to just to be nominated at this stage.
Beerbongs And Bentleys // Post Malone
Odds: 19-2
Peak Chart Position (Billboard): 1st
Metacritic rating: 51
Strongest Song: "Over Now"
Weakest Song: "Better Now"
Daniel's Overall Ranking: 5.5/10
Quick take:
When attempting to predict the field of nominees for this award, Beerbongs And Bentleys always proved to be such a conundrum. On the one hand, yes, its tracklist was essentially one radio hit after another. On the other hand, as an album on the whole, it received very mixed reviews....were the Grammys actually going to nominate freaking Post Malone? As it turns out, yes, they were. I will admit, I went into my first listen of Beerbongs begrudgingly, and came out with more approval than I anticipated. The Post that gets played on the radio is arguably the worst of the rap-singer, particularly the stupidly whiny "Better Now." The 23-year old is at his best when he's leaning into his moody grunge in the form of alternative rock, a la "Over Now" or "Stay," rather than hiding behind a layer of faux rap with trap beats. Overall, Beerbongs And Bentley is inconsistent, but I can confidently say the good outweighs the bad. Also, shout out to the man for his Michael Scott reference on "Candy Paint."
By The Way, I Forgive You // Brandi Carlile
Odds: 8-1
Peak Chart Position (Billboard): 5th
Metacritic rating: 81
Strongest Song: "Harder To Forgive"
Weakest Song: "Hold Out Your Hand"
Daniel's Overall Ranking: 7.5/10
Quick take:
Staying on the theme of surprising nominees, if I were to guess who the most nominated woman at this year's Grammys would be, I would probably go through at least 10 names from this landmark year of women before getting to Brandi Carlile. The indie-folk queen has a large underground following, but does not seem the type to score 6 nominations, particularly in the Big 3 categories. But here By The Way finds itself, with its lead single "The Joke" nominated for both Song and Record of the Year. Even in a crowded year such as this, don't call this is a lifetime achievement nomination; By The Way is a great listen all the way through, with highs coming via the aforementioned track, "Harder To Forgive," and "Party of One." Other than the wailing "Hold Out Your Hand," every one of the songs is crafted quite well, musically and lyrically. It would still be an upset for the 'old woman' of the crowd to make off with this award, but it was an upset for her to be here in the first place!
Invasion Of Privacy // Cardi B
Odds: 8-1
Peak Chart Position (Billboard): 1st
Metacritic rating: 84
Strongest Song: "Bodak Yellow"
Weakest Song: "Drip"
Daniel's Overall Ranking: 6.5/10
Quick take:
I mentioned earlier how there wasn't a clear 'frontrunner' album this year, one that was beloved by the masses and the critics alike. But if there were one nominee to fit the bill, it'd be Invasion Of Privacy. Cardi B might be universally beloved for her personality, but clearly her music has enough of a following in itself, as the Bronx rapper's full-length debut hit #1 on the charts. The adoration wasn't lost on critics; this is the 3rd-best reviewed album of the field, and Rolling Stone named it their best of the year. In my insignificant opinion, Invasion Of Privacy is a bit all over the place as a body of work. There are some notable low points, like the ridiculous "Bickenhead" and the catchy but ineffectual "Drip." But the highs are some serious highs, including the scorching album opener "Get Up 10," and the best summer singles of 2017 and 2018, respectively, with "Bodak Yellow" and "I Like It."
Dirty Computer //Janelle Monáe
Odds: 7-1
Peak Chart Position (Billboard): 6th
Metacritic rating: 87
Strongest Song: "Screwed"
Weakest Song: "Crazy Classic Life"
Daniel's Overall Ranking: 9/10
Quick take:
Dirty Computer, by the slimmest of margins, was not the most critically-acclaimed of the bunch. Nor was it the biggest commercial success, by a not-as-slim margin. But you'd be hard-pressed to find an album that generated as much buzz in 2018 as Janelle Monáe's. The R&B singer unleashed more pop and hip-hop influence in her 3rd album, and critics and fans alike were, as the youths say, here for it. Dirty Computer is a sprawling, expansive, rich body of work, blending the personal with the political with ease. "Screwed" is perhaps the best example of that, but brilliant highlights can be found in "So Afraid,"Make Me Feel," "Django Jane," and "Americans." With an album full of different tricks, some songs are going to work more effectively than others, but it's hard to pinpoint a genuine weak spot in the extensive tracklist.
Scorpion // Drake
Odds: 7-1
Peak Chart Position (Billboard): 1st
Metacritic rating: 67
Strongest Song: "Nice For What"
Weakest Song: "I'm Upset"
Daniel's Overall Ranking: 6/10
Quick take:
Drake is far from the oldest rapper in the game, and yet he's already carved out a Grammy legacy that's tough to match: 5 full-length albums, and every single one of them has been nominated for Best Rap Album, with a couple taking the prize. It wasn't until his last album Views that he first broke through to the general nominations with an Album of the Year nod, a success that has now been duplicated with Scorpion's nomination. Ironically, these last two albums have been the worst reviewed of his discography. That might owe to the sheer amount of content: on both, Drake throws an exorbitant amount of tracks, which of course leads to a higher number of good stuff, but also leads to much more self-absorbed filler. This is Scorpion in a nutshell. There is a lot of what Drake does really well: utilizing great beats and samples to create an upbeat, atmospheric, addicting track, best exemplified in summer smash "Nice For What." But we also do see Drake at his worst: emotionally overbearing at several turns, or showing ineffective attempts at going 'hard,' such as in bland single "I'm Upset."
Black Panther: The Album // Various Artists
Odds: 5-1
Peak Chart Position (Billboard): 1st
Metacritic rating: 80
Strongest Song: "King's Dead"
Weakest Song: "Redemption"
Daniel's Overall Ranking: 8/10
Quick take:
When it was announced acclaimed rapper Kendrick Lamar would be producing the soundtrack for Marvel film Black Panther, most thoughts turned to how amazing the film would be. I think it's safe to say very few were prepared for how well the album would stand on its own, a fact that manifested itself in the form of an Album of the Year nomination. If it were to take top honors, it would be the first film soundtrack to win the award since O Brother, Where Art Thou? in 2002, and also the first Rap/Hip-Hop album to take it since Outkast's triumph 2004. Given the historical disadvantage, and the fact that Lamar's more acclaimed albums fell short, it's fair to be skeptical of Black Panther's chances, but it would not be fair to act as if it didn't deserve to be a contender. Lamar and his various collaborators produced a tracklist chock full of delights, whether it be the evocative "All The Stars," the rip-roaring collaboration "King's Dead," Schoolboy Q's throwdown on "X," the absurdly catchy instrumental on "Big Shot," or the inspiring and original "Pray For Me."
Golden Hour // Kacey Musgraves
Odds: 5-1
Peak Chart Position (Billboard): 4th
Metacritic rating: 89
Strongest Song: "Slow Burn"
Weakest Song: "Lonely Weekend"
Daniel's Overall Ranking: 9/10
Quick take:
As much as I like to rant and rave about the plight of Rap at the Grammys, Country hasn't fared much better. Taylor Swift's Fearless triumph in 2010 is the closest thing to a bona fide Country album that has won the top award in the last 20 years. Kacey Musgraves has a very real chance to change that this weekend, with Golden Hour being the odds-on favorite in a competitive race for Album of the Year. Bettors backing Musgraves are counting on the album's critical success. Though the starlet is extremely well-regarded in Country circles, her esteem hasn't reached much crossover popularity, but critics were enamored with Golden Hour, rendering it the highest-rated of any nominated album at the Grammys. They weren't the only ones; I, the notorious opposer of all things Country, was won over from the opening stanza of the ephemeral "Slow Burn," which is, I think, perhaps the most beautiful songs of 2018. The tracks that follow continue the trend of music that sounds as if it should be listened to while floating in the Texas skyline, whether it's the magical "Oh, What A World," the deliciously peppy and sassy "High Horse," or the vulnerable "Happy & Sad." Whether Kacey wins or loses this award on Sunday night, believe the hype about this one, folks. It's songwriting that would make James Taylor proud.